CATHARANTHUS-ROSEUS (L) G-DON - PLANT-REGENERATION AND ALKALOIDS CONTENT

We describe here a regeneration of plantlets of Catharanthus roseus (L .) G. Don from shoot tips and axillary buds. Shoot tips were excised f rom 7-day-old seedlings and were incubated in solid Nitsch and Nitsch (NN) medium supplemented with kinetin, benzyladenine (BA), indole-3-bu tyric acid (IBA) and beta-indolylacetic acid (IAA) in various combinat ions. After two months in culture, regenerated rooted plantlets were c ut and transferred to a new medium; the explants contained shoot tips or axillary buds. Four passages were done. We obtained about 200 rooti ng plantlets from one seedling. Then the plantlets were transferred to the soil and they grew under a foil tent. After five months of vegeta tion they were collected, dried and weighed. Chemical investigations o f leaves of these plants were done. The vindoline and catharanthine we re dominant alkaloids in the juvenile stage of plants (before blooming ). Total amount of alkaloids, equal 2.95%, was gravimetrically determi ned in leaves of plants, after 4th passage, regenerated in vitro on NN medium supplemented with kinetin and IBA.